Fleeing a fight was something an arrogant idiot would call cowardes, but Nikto knew better than to die a foolish death. He retreated with haste into a nearby forest, it was untouched by humanity, but now it was forever stained with the blood of soldiers.
The thick woodland grew darker as the sun disappeared from the sky, this area was not mapped out, so he was going in blind. The only thing he worried for was the awareness of bears, and using a firearm on them would alert enemies of his location.
The forest's old trees became silhouetted as Nikto’s flashlight hit their bark, it looked like a giant maze of stones, wood, and mos, but he pushed forward nonetheless.
After for what felt like hours of walking, Nikto stumbled across a clearing between the trees. The grass was surprisingly flat as if something big had been moving around. Above him, he could see the glimmering stars in the night sky, enjoying the view, he settled down to rest.
His eyes felt heavy and his body sore, but just as he was about to fall asleep something moved beneath the moss opposite from him. It looked like overgrown rocks at first sight, but soon a larger creature rose from the ground. Nikto’s eyes widened behind the mask as his eyes met yours, the eyes of a monstrous forest guardian.